Industrial Technology and Witchcraft
Berlin, DE · 5 known investors
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Industrial Technology and Witchcraft is a game studio developing voxel- and pixel-based video games, including Dawn Apart, a space colony and factory simulation set on a destructible voxel planet. The five-person team builds games for players in the simulation and strategy genre.
Also known as IT&W · IT&W Games GmbH
Investors · 5
Also in the syndicate · 4
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Industrial Technology and Witchcraft, operating as IT&W Games GmbH from Hallesche Str. 5a in Berlin-Kreuzberg, is a video game studio that develops titles built from voxels and pixels with original soundtracks. The studio is a five-person team and acts as both developer and publisher of its own games.
Its flagship title is Dawn Apart, a space colony and factory simulation set on a handcrafted, fully destructible voxel planet. Players are sent to the distant planet Sirius B 3 to mine resources, grow a settlement of engineers, mercenaries and civilians, and defend it against a hostile native population, either meeting production quotas set by a corporate contractor or rebelling against it. Core systems include vertical factory building with multi-floor assembly lines, colony management, and destruction physics in which structures and terrain can be reduced to individual voxels. Dawn Apart entered Early Access on 14 July 2025 for PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.
Founding story
The company was founded by Thilo Hardt and Tony Twyman, both described as veterans of the Berlin startup ecosystem and software developers by background. Hardt co-founded the online optician Mister Spex in 2007 and founded the business travel management software company eWings.com in 2013, which later became part of American Express GBT. The founders' stated aim is to make games that a new generation of children will remember as part of their youth.
Business model
The studio develops and self-publishes its own PC games, listing itself as both developer and publisher of Dawn Apart, and distributes through Steam and the Epic Games Store. It additionally operates a direct-to-consumer online shop selling branded apparel such as jackets, hoodies, shirts and caps tied to the Dawn Apart and Industrial Technology and Witchcraft brands, priced from roughly €39.95 to €129.95.
Revenue comes from sales of PC games through digital storefronts (Steam and Epic Games Store), with Dawn Apart sold in Early Access, supplemented by merchandise sales through the studio's own online shop.
Traction
Dawn Apart moved from announcement to Early Access release on PC on 14 July 2025 across Steam and the Epic Games Store, drew coverage from international gaming outlets including PC Gamer, PCGamesN and Kotaku, and supports a merchandise line. The studio remained in hiring mode, advertising Senior Game Developer and Graphics Designer roles.
Latest developments
Dawn Apart entered Early Access on 14 July 2025 on Steam and the Epic Games Store, published by the studio itself, alongside an expanded merchandise shop and open positions for a senior game developer and a graphics designer.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
A small, venture-backed independent studio in the German games sector, positioned in the colony simulation and factory automation niche, with Dawn Apart framed by press as combining automation and colony management with large-scale destruction physics.
The main technical differentiator claimed for Dawn Apart is full voxel destructibility of an entire handcrafted planet combined with vertical multi-floor factory automation and colony management in a single title.
Technology
Games are built on voxel and pixel rendering, with Dawn Apart running on a handcrafted, fully destructible voxel planet where all built and encountered objects can be pulverised to the individual voxel. The game combines this destruction physics with vertical, multi-floor factory and assembly line construction and colony simulation. Job listings indicate work with Unity or Unreal engines.
Go-to-market
The studio markets directly to PC players through Steam and Epic Games Store wishlisting, trailers and screenshots on its own site, a Kickstarter presence, and community channels on Discord, TikTok, Twitter and Facebook. It has also secured coverage in enthusiast gaming media across several languages, including PC Gamer, PCGamesN, Kotaku, Automaton (Japan), Playground (Russia), PC Games Hardware and Mein-MMO (Germany).
PC players of colony management, base building, automation and simulation games, a segment press coverage has compared to Factorio, RimWorld and Teardown.
Geography
Headquartered and incorporated in Berlin, Germany (IT&W Games GmbH), with roles offered in Berlin and remotely; games are distributed globally through PC digital storefronts and the merchandise store sells in euros.
History
The studio raised a €1.68 million seed round in March 2022 from High-Tech Gründerfonds, DN Capital and BLN Capital, the single family office of Kolibri Games founders Daniel Stammler, Oliver Löffler and Janosch Sadowski; HTGF dates its investment to 2022 and had previously backed Hardt's ventures Mister Spex and eWings.com. The proceeds were designated for building new voxel and pixel games. The studio subsequently announced and developed Dawn Apart, which reached PC Early Access on 14 July 2025 and also supports a branded merchandise store.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 2
launches, deals, and filingsDawn Apart, the studio's flagship space colony and factory simulation set on a fully destructible voxel planet, entered Early Access on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, self-published by the studio.
Industrial Technology and Witchcraft received a €1.68 million seed investment in cash in March 2022 from High-Tech Gründerfonds, DN Capital and BLN Capital, the family office of the Kolibri Games founders Daniel Stammler, Oliver Löffler and Janosch Sadowski. The funds were earmarked for developing new voxel- and pixel-based games with original soundtracks.
$1.9M source ↗
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 8
primary sources listed
- Industrial Technology and Witchcraftindustrial-technology-and-witchcraft.com · web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Industrial Technology and Witchcraft do?
- Berlin games studio building voxel- and pixel-based titles, led by colony and factory sim Dawn Apart.
- Who are Industrial Technology and Witchcraft's investors?
- Industrial Technology and Witchcraft's investors include BLN Capital.
- Where is Industrial Technology and Witchcraft headquartered?
- Industrial Technology and Witchcraft is headquartered in Berlin, DE.